A Dublin based LGBTQ+ inclusive GAA club is struggling to find a home pitch.
Na Gaeil Aeracha was set up in 2020 and it’s Ireland's first ever LGBTQ+ Inclusive GAA Team.
Maria Rafferty, who is the players representative of the club, told Dublin Live: “We’re looking under rocks at this stage for a pitch. We’re training in the Phoenix Park, both the men and women's team. It’s not a club ground, it’s a public space.
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“We’ve no clubhouse, no pitch of our own and all of our matches have to be played away. It’d be lovely to have our own grounds and our own little hub," she said.
“We’ve bags for balls, I’ve 30 jerseys this week and I’ve to figure out how to get them on the bike and cycle to our next match.
“Our matches kick off at 6:30pm and we’ve to leave work early to get there on time. A lot of our matches are far away and when you’re trying to find somewhere new, how to get there, it does take a lot of time.
“Any new club is probably facing the same difficulties. GAA is typically a parish based sport. It's easier if you’ve a pitch that’s associated with a parish but we’re not parish based, we’re based in an inclusive LGBTQ+ community.”
Maria is based in Dublin but is originally a Kerry woman. The club is extremely important to her as it helped her reconnect with her GAA roots.
She said: “I always played football, I'm 25 and I grew up in Kerry. I moved to Dublin for college and I moved off sports, common in a lot of people but probably more common in women. When you become a teenager and go to college it’s hard to keep everything up.
“I was looking to get back into the sport after college, just as a hobby. I heard about the team on the radio and I joined up. It’s the best decision I've made and I’ve become very involved.
“It’s great if you want to get back into the sport, meet new people, it’s a little family and it has a social element.
“Everyone is there to play football and they’re either part of or an alley to the LGBTQ+ community. For people in that community, it offers a safe place to play their national sport.”
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